In searching for the successor to Jerod Mayo, the New England Patriots adhered to the ‘Rooney Rule’ — not in practice, but merely in principle.

Former NFL GM Rod Graves criticized the Patriots' usage of the Rooney Rule by interviewing two black candidates before hiring Mike Vrabel.

People in New England reportedly “disapproved” of the team’s handling of the Rooney Rule in the head coach search

Patriots owner Robert Kraft has always gone outside the box with many of his coaches and roster management. He didn't offer a full interview process for Bill Belichick back in 2000 - essentially just stealing him from the Jets. He also did not run an interview process for Jerod Mayo last season.

Patriots owner Robert Kraft has hired Mike Vrabel but Lions DC Aaron Glenn made a point about the Rooney Rule in the process.

The NFL's Rooney Rule has been in place for more than 20 years as a way to help ensure that minority coaching candidates get a fair shot at jobs. But as time has gone on it's increasingly become a box that owners just check off on the way to hiring the candidates that they already had in mind —

During the latest edition of his "The Right Time" podcast, sports journalist Bomani Jones defended the Patriots even though it's now clear New England was always going to hire Patriots Hall of Famer and one-time Associated Press Coach of the Year Award winner Mike Vrabel for the job.

Mike Vrabel is believed to be the frontrunner for the head coaching job in New England, and the team quickly cleared a path to hiring him by interviewing former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich and former Houston Texans offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton on Tuesday.

One NFL Insider called the Patriots' head coaching search a "sham" aimed at circumventing the league's Rooney Rule

Dumping Jerod Mayo not long after game's end suggests Robert Kraft might already have someone in mind as the next Patriots head coach. Hello, Mike Vrabel.

FOXBORO — After firing Jerod Mayo as his head coach Sunday, Robert Kraft is moving quickly ... a head coach until they satisfy the NFL’s Rooney Rule, which mandates two in-person interviews ...

Breer directly noted the Patriots could've run "a sham interview process" simply because they are "desperate" to get to Vrabel, who has attracted interest from several other clubs and could be hired at any time. Additionally, Fox Sports NFL insider Jordan Schultz accused the Patriots of "blatantly" sidestepping the Rooney Rule: